Subversive Gaming

Posted by Stan on 11/26/07 • Categorized as China Law

This Wired article about Midway Games’ first person shooter (FPS) Blacksite: Area 51 was a real eye-opener. I usually confine myself to writing about IP issues and once in a while about the smut and history censors over here, but I wonder what the Ministry of Culture would think of this if it became a trend in game production:

And this, my friends, makes Blacksite a weirdly unusual game. Many videogames include fantasy and sci-fi politics — but Blacksite directly tackles the most divisive political issues of our real-life world. Onscreen soldiers gripe about the wisdom of the Iraq war, the ethics of torture, the hypocrisy of politicians and, perhaps most incendiary, the way Pentagon and White House cover-ups leave rank-and-file fighters to be imprisoned or die for mistakes made by guys in suits and ties.

Dude, that is serious stuff for a FPS. This is all about the U.S., but you gotta wonder. Production budgets for games keep mounting, stories are becoming more complex, and creators are looking for something new to inject into these things. Look at some of the plots coming out of Hollywood theatricals this season – this is a trend.

If this kind of storytelling becomes more subtle, the censors will start pulling out their hair in frustration.


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